You Had To Be There
by One Wing In The Fire
Summary: After leaving his family 21 years ago, Mr. Mathews visits his son at Tulsa County Jail. Two-Bit will never forget what he did though.


**A/N; Hey y'all! So I absolutely love the song You Had To Be There by Tim McGraw. I was listening to it (over and over again…) and this idea popped into my head. This takes place 3 years after the events of The Outsiders. The lyrics of the song are imbedded within this one-shot. If u haven't heard You Had To Be There, I suggest u listen to it after reading or u might think of the characters singing instead of speaking in some parts. Sorry in advance for the terrible puns. Not really, I'm proud of them. :P**

 **Disclaimer; I don't own The Outsiders or You Had To Be There**.

The cop leads me down the dull, grey halls of Tulsa County Jail and to the visiting room. I guess one of the gang decided to drop by. Probably Ponyboy. He's visited a couple times since I was arrested earlier this month, keeping me updated on what's going on in the real world. I tell him about all the people, prisoners and fuzz alike, that I've pissed off with my brilliant jokes. I know they're all incredibly cheesy, but what can I say; They make me feel grate. Seriously though, this place has gotta be more entertaining when I'm here. I make everything cheddar.

I laugh out loud. The cop gives me a weird look but doesn't say anything. I guess he decided to leave it brie. Okay, okay, I'm done with the cheese puns now. I can't think of any more. Or at least any more gouda ones.

I grin to myself as the cop ushers me into the room and sits me down at one of the visiting stations. The station has two phones and a wall of (probably bulletproof) glass placed in between the visitor and the jailbird. The grin leaves my face when I see the other person. He sure as hell ain't Ponyboy, unless Pony suddenly aged 20 years. I've only met the man once before but there's no mistaking who he is. I find my own eyes looking back at me. He has the same build as me, the same grin I was wearing seconds ago is plastered on his face.

He picks up a phone. I hesitantly do the same. He immediately starts the conversation by confirming what I already know, "Boy, I'm your old man." I faintly wonder if I'm that straightforward. He looks at me expectantly, like I'm supposed to be overjoyed. Once upon a time, I might have been but not now. I don't budge, not even so much as a blink.

"Oh come on, better late than never don't you think?" He starts talking like we're best buddies or something, "I read it in the paper, I can't believe your 21. I can't believe some son of mine could do the things I hear you've done." He goes on like some big hero, who flew in to save the day. But he ain't. If anything, he's the bad guy; the villain.

"You coulda avoided being arrested for a few things though. Like 'disturbing the peace' and shoplif-" I cut him off, I don't wanna hear it. "If you're here to steer me right, man, it's too late."

"But-" I interrupt him again, "You had to be there, and I'm talkin' from day one. That's the only time a man should talk through glass to his new son." He's silent and I take it as my cue to continue. "And you'd have to go back and teach me how when I was nine, cause Mama couldn't throw a ball even if she had the time." Mr. Curtis had to teach me. He also tried to teach me how to fish, I couldn't stop telling jokes long enough to actually learn. Ya know what? I ain't done talking. My name's Two-Bit for a reason.

"I shoulda been learnin' how to fish, I stead of learnin' how to smoke. I bet if you'd have whooped my tail, I'd never thought it was a joke." Mama tried to lead me on the right path but she worked too much, never had enough time. But man, she prayed like hell for me, "Sometimes the will for doin' wrong is way too strong for any mama's prayers. You had to be there."

But he wasn't and he can't turn back time. His grin is long gone and he softly says, "I'm sorry that you hate like you do." I glare at him. He doesn't understand but he will. "Dry it up, man. We ain't makin' this about you. It's about a teenage girl against the world, who was left there high and dry. About some kids who might've stood a whole lot better shot at life. But you had to be there." He finally has the decency to look guilty. I guess I managed to grind the message into that thick skull of his.

He left my mama all alone with a two month old baby boy to take care of and I sure as hell wasn't an easy child. And yea, he came back for a couple nights when I was 5. But the only thing he did was give Mama the wonderful gift of pregnancy and left again. He probably doesn't even know he has a daughter. He left before she even found out. I hope he doesn't know. It's better for Karen that way. She'll never have to deal with this asshole.

The cop comes back and lets me know that my time's up. I lock eyes with the man I would be calling Dad if he had never left. But he did. He may be my father but he sure as hell ain't my dad. "They say I'm out of time." And I guess it hits him right there and then, "My God son, so am I."

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